The Vanderbilt Child and Family Center recently coordinated a monthlong “Fill the Crib” activity for students at The Acorn School, with every child care center participating.
VCFC preschool students created signs for empty cribs placed in the lobbies of each location inviting donations of pantry-stable food items as well as diapers. Parents were encouraged to let their child select a favorite item on a shopping trip or from their home pantry and bring it to school to fill the crib.
Through this simple act of giving, children at The Acorn School were shown that individuals making small contributions can yield a significant donation. Acorn School students, staff and families collected some 734 pounds of items for Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee.
The Acorn School regularly designs projects that model a caring community and empower children to be protagonists for positive change in the world, according to Kathleen Seabolt, executive director of the Vanderbilt Child and Family Center. VCFC seeks out good-neighbor activities that allow engagement with the Nashville community. Developing kindness and compassion for others is a critical part of young children’s social and emotional development, and socially competent children are more likely to succeed academically and to consider themselves happy, Seabolt said.